Excaecavit Affectio
by ThisIsAwesomeness
Summary: "No matter whose face my eyes can see, it will always be blind in my memory." Annabeth Chase is a prosopamnesiac. She is a motivated architect who has live her whole life in complete routine. But then, Percy comes and barges in her life, destroying her every planned out strategies. How can she fall for a man she sees everyday and yet she could not even recall his face?
1. Intersectio

**EXCAECAVIT AFFECTIO**

_I pursue you where none else has pursued you; _

_Silence, the desk, the flippant expression, the night, the accustom'd routine, if these conceal you from others, or from yourself, they do not conceal you from me;_

_The shaved face, the unsteady eye, the impure complexion, if these balk others, they do not_

_balk me,_

_-Walt Whitman_

The stars glittered brightly in the clear night sky as Annabeth Chase jogged around her usual circular path. The luminous moon seemed to beam at her today, as that ever rarely happened. After reaching her second lap, she picked up her pace and blindly reached for her phone attached to her arm.

_5:55 A.M._

'Five minutes more.'

She glanced around and saw the sun peering over the horizon, slowly driving the black atmosphere away with its rays. She could now hear the morning cuckoos of the roosters and the sweet humming of a few mocking birds. Just a minute ago, it seemed that the world was boxed inside an abyss and now it was illuminated by fiery streams of light. Annabeth wondered how these things happen so suddenly and yet it creates a vivid vision of how majestic the world is. She found herself being entranced as the glowing ball of fire started to drift away from the horizon, and touched the familiar face of heavens. She thought of how possibly the world continues with its routines, of all its faults, loopholes and labyrinths, and still never gets tired of doing it.

She reached her house at exactly 6, a custom time she'd set for her to prepare for work. Long before, Annabeth had trained herself to be familiar with the common procedures and practices that definitely made her life more manageable and comfortable. She certainly didn't minded much the complexity of Life, for as long as she's stuck with her tradition and usual system, she could easily sort out accustomed patterns and methods to fit any variations and diversions. Long story short, Annabeth Chase was a certified planner.

After her quick bath, she walked over to her dining table and got her breakfast ready. Her eyes scanned the newspaper while silently sipping her usual black coffee. Apparently, Annabeth got a sort of obsession with anything within the shades of black, as she secretly admired its simplicity, the way it carried itself regal. Even though she yearned for it, she didn't care much about her dull gray eyes and golden curls.

When she's already set for work, she grabbed her typical leather bag and her camera from its hook. She locked her apartment's door and carefully trudge the wooden staircase. On her last step, she was met by a beautiful Cherokee girl with an unevenly cut chocolate hair.

"Hey Annabeth!" the girl exclaimed, hugging her for a greeting.

Okay. Annabeth tried to search her mind for any recognition of the girl with the unevenly cut chocolate hair.

Chocolate hair…Unevenly cut…

After a few seconds of thinking, one name rose out. 'Oh, Piper.'

"Hey! Piper," she replied. "What makes you up her at seven in the morning? I thought you hate mornings."

"Oh silly!" Piper grinned. "I just want to tell you that there'll be someone moving in tonight."

Piper nudged her shoulder. "You know… Maybe you two could hang out. He'll be occupying the room above yours."

Annabeth slapped Piper's arm playfully, smiling. "Haha. Don't worry. I'll make sure it will be hell in here."

"Well, hell can be pretty hot."

After a few minutes, Annabeth arrived at her workplace, too early to spot any of her co-workers. She strolled over her table, unconsciously arranged the piles of paper and rolls of blueprints that were definitely in order. As she started rummaging her bag for her phone, she felt a light tap on her shoulder. She peered at him, a man of confidence in a crisp black suit and slicked back gray hair was looking at her.

Crisp black suit… slicked back gray hair… Mr. Howard. Her boss.

She instantly sat up and put down her bag. "Oh, Mr. Howard, good morning."

Mr. Howard smiled softly at her, his dark eyes crinkling a little. "Always early, Ms. Chase." Annabeth seemed to brighten a little. Why wouldn't she? She just got a compliment from her boss.

"Okay. I have a favor to ask of you, if you don't mind."

"Anything, of course. If it's within my abilities, definitely I can do it for you."

"Okay. Thank you." He slipped his hands in his pockets. "Here's the favor. I need you to somehow guide my friend's son about the quirks and that of the company. How do the staffs work, how these happen and sort of. Think you can do it?" he asked.

"Yes, sir." Annabeth replied without a second thought.

"Good." Mr. Howard clapped her in the back. "If you want to start now, he's in the 3rd room in 3rd floor."

"Okay." She grinned at him.

When she finished reorganizing her things, she picked up her bag and camera and headed off the 3rd room in 3rd floor.

Annabeth's pacing in front of the door, constantly murmuring to herself. A few weird looks were sent at her, but she cared none about it. What troubling her right now was the thing she should first say when she enters the room. Funny, she thought. But seriously, she couldn't even choose what to say.

"Should I say hello, hi, oh I'm Annabeth, good morning probably?" she muttered quietly. She stopped pacing when an idea popped in her mind.

"Hello. Good Morning, I'm Annabeth. That's it!" she exclaimed. Her voice came out loud, but no one cared anyway.

But, when she started knocking at the door several times to be rude and yet, no one still came, her patience melted out.

'If you won't let me in, then I'll force my way in!'

She pushed through the door, slowly but she could hear nothing aside from the door's faint creak. She tipped her way towards the table, where a man was sleeping soundly. His back was hunched forward and his head was cradled carefully on top of his crossed arms.

Annabeth stared at him bluntly, as if she was in a sort of trance. She thought of how possibly he could be so good looking. His dark long eyelashes were sprawled neatly on his eyes, his high cheek bones graced his face and his accentuated jaw that looked like he was Adonis carved out of marble to life, specifically for perfection. Her eyes flitted down to his lips and oh—his full lips were slightly parted and …what was that?

Her gaze zeroed on the liquid that seemed to come from his lips. Upon closer inspection, she saw what it was actually.

Drool. He just drooled.

And all at once, she hastily got hold of her camera and in a click, came the flash that sort of woke him up.

His eyes fluttered open and she swore she had never seen eyes as green as his were. His bright emerald orbs quite resembled the unrestrainable sea, like the way he seemed spontaneous. Somehow, Annabeth felt a tugging sensation, as if she could drown in his eyes just by looking at him.

Of course, Annabeth was so startled at the moment that she forgot the first line she was supposed to utter. Instead of, 'Hello, good morning. I'm Annabeth!', what came out was, "You drool in your sleep."

He didn't seem to mind it though. But when it soon dawned to him what she just said, he quickly sat up straight, and wiped the liquid using the back of his hand.

"Sorry." He smiled sheepishly at her, and Annabeth couldn't help but smile in his demeanor. "Right. Uh, who are you again? I believe I hadn't met you yet," he said while running his hand in his dark rumpled hair.

"Oh, my bad." Annabeth flushed in her own mistake, silently cursing herself. 'Why the hell did I forgot that?'

"I'm Annabeth. Annabeth Chase."

"Percy here. Percy Jackson." He extended his hands as a gesture to shake Annabeth's but retracted it as soon as he realized that he used his hand to wipe off the… whatever.

"Oh, sorry!" He fumbled in his suit for his handkerchief, but he was unsuccessful to find one. He's blushing hard while furiously digging on his bag for something he could wipe his hand on, and Annabeth found it a little cute for her liking.

Feeling bad for Percy, she handed him her white handkerchief with the fancy embroidered 'Annabeth' in the lower right corner.

"Thank you." He managed to say.

Her eyes were suddenly drawn to his hair and she felt a sudden desire to touch it. Unconsciously, her hand raked its way through his hair, slightly tugging at some places, but in all, she felt comfortable.

Percy, however, momentarily stopped and closed his eyes. He didn't know why but he felt safe and at ease as Annabeth ran her hand through his hair. It's a different feeling, one he didn't felt for a while, a sensation of contentment and peace of mind.

"It's soft," Annabeth stated quietly. He turned to look at her eyes, and she, she seemed lost. Like there was something soulful in her eyes, a depressed and vulnerable feeling despite the storm she was.

After a few silent beats, she withdrew her hand and Annabeth felt the embarrassment flood through her. How had she let herself be distracted?

"Sorry. I didn't mean to be so impulsive. Uh, maybe we can talk later? I really need to finish something." She hurriedly excused herself, taking long strides towards the door.

Percy was staring straightly at the door, wondering how the contentment he felt slipped away as Annabeth walked out of his door.


	2. Somniatis

Annabeth groaned as she continuously banged her head in the bathroom cubicle. She felt thoroughly embarrassed for her rash actions with the guy she just met, and she supposed that it'll be long before they could talk again.

'He probably thinks now that I'm a creep,' she thought. 'What if…what if he tells Mr. Howard?!'

Annabeth grumpily stepped out of the cubicle, making her way towards her work table.

The company's hallways were filled with various people: personnel, guests, clients and staffs. They appeared to be friendly enough, one greeting another, shaking hands and smiling too huge to be happy. It's easy to make friends with this kind of community, and Annabeth could never have been gladder to be part of one. However, what made her to be so independent and anti-social was the sickness she wished she never had. If it was another, then Annabeth could be perhaps happier, not trying and dreading to feel belonged. But how could she? She couldn't even remember what her co-workers look or her clients and some of her neighbors. She may have been expert in creating the dreams for people and yet the truth was she couldn't even create her own.

The curse of not being able to remember faces could've been worse than being blind, Annabeth thought. At least, when you're blind, you don't have to try to remember a person on how they look and that seemingly surrounding darkness could have been comforting at some point. But here she was, standing midst the sea of unknown faces, maybe a few she could or couldn't have encountered, shared a few words and jokes, nonetheless she wouldn't still remember them. She wished of how she should have been alone, and perhaps she didn't have to pretend to be a part of something she never was.

The crowd seemed to part as she sauntered her way over to her office. The camera slung in her right shoulder felt heavier than before, and Annabeth could never have been more tired than ever. Perhaps, there's an invisible burden riding on her back, the weight of it being too much to bear. And, she thought of how possibly this could have a connection with the overly attractive guy she met earlier and the massive regret that felt to be weighing down her heart.

The rest of her time at work passed out fine, with her sketching effortlessly in her blueprints, pouring her every being in it. Of all the moment she was there, she never made any interactions with anyone partly because of the reason that she would just forget all of them. The companion she didn't minded much was her black coffee that provided her as much warmth she thought talking to a person could probably give her. The only problem she could find was that the feeling wasn't mutual, since the coffee didn't benefit from her as much as she did from the coffee.

'Overthinking again, aren't we Annabeth?' she mused to herself.

After a day of sketching and false knowing, Annabeth dragged herself up their apartment's staircase. Her heavy bag and camera huddled her shoulders and the fact that her feet were tightly constricted in her black stilettos didn't help at all. When she entered the door, she hastily slumped her body in the sofa. Heavy throbbing sensation sprung on her mind, like shards of lightning flashing directly at her. She didn't really felt sick, as what she believed to be, but her head really stung and she can't help but be afraid. Could this be part of the disorder she has? Or, could this be probably one of the symptoms of a heavier consequence? Various questions swarmed on her mind and the more she thought of it, the more her mind hurt.

When her consciousness was about to drift away, someone pounded furiously at her door. 'Couldn't they just somehow leave me alone?' With a grunt, she toppled and stumbled several times as she tried to reach for the door knob. At her doorstep were a Cherokee girl and a seriously attractive guy. Even in her sleep-hazed mind, Annabeth could still feel her girl hormones rushing through her. In a normal situation, she could have possibly been blushing by now. But, she definitely didn't cared anymore, as if there could be something worse than her extreme migraine. As for the girl, Annabeth could somehow have a foggy recognition of her, 'Was she Piper?' but she really couldn't recall the gorgeous man. Don't get her wrong. Annabeth would definitely want to imprint his face in her mind (he's too handsome), but she's currently stuck with a sickness that somehow erases faces in her memory. 'Couldn't there be just some sort of exception for insanely good-looking guys?'

"Oh, Piper." Annabeth rubbed the sleep of her eyes. The handsome fellow seemed to recognize her since his eyes widened dramatically when he saw at her.

"Annabeth? Annabeth Chase?" he asked her.

So, really. Annabeth tried hard to skim her pathetic memory to recall the man before her. She searched for any features that might ring a bell to her, but nothing came up.

"Who are you again? How did you know my name?" she inquired.

A flash of hurt passed his sea green eyes and Annabeth cursed herself for asking that question again.

Percy Jackson didn't really minded much that he had one hell of a father that left them for who knows what and didn't make an appearance until last week, with literally flying colors on his feet. He was sort of annoyed, not because of the 'my-father-came-back-after-leaving-us-for-so-many-years-and-I-am-angry' emotion he's supposed to feel, rather his father pretty much destroyed the moment when he was about to beat the high score in a certain arcade game.

After a very cold welcome and a not-so-heartfelt conversation with his long lost dad, Percy came out of the room in a suit and tie, and literally a millionaire. Body guards surrounded him and a very expensive black limousine awaited in his mercy. Although he would very likely to take the limousine under his name, the mansion his father gave him was one thing he cannot take. Not quite literally, of course. The reason he argued was probably the worst reason at all, saying that he isn't still married so what for? Percy insisted that he already rented an apartment nearby and it was decent enough to live in.

Aside from being a sudden millionaire, who would have thought that he'd be an instant CEO in a large architectural firm? Well, certainly not Percy. Just today, he'd been sent off to have a good look of his soon to be baby (the architectural firm it is). It was really large, though that could have been an understatement. If he'd just scan the place, one day wouldn't still be enough. The hallways branched from here to there and from there to everywhere. The architect who made the design of the building was most likely to be the great-great-great-grand-grand-grand-grandson of Daedalus, for the whole building could have been an enormous labyrinth. So Percy, feeling that the current situation he was in was making him nauseous, he slept off his good old self in his supposed to be office. As he was about to reach the high score in his dream, a bright light appeared and he awoke behind comprehension. Percy could have been dreaming, definitely a while ago, but no. A goddess was standing and damn, staring straight at him. 'This is a one hell of lucky day for me,' he thought.

But his train of thoughts were broken as soon as he heard her first words to him. And, oh God, he could never be bored hearing her speak. Her voice resounded like careful and powerful chords of a violin, played with extreme elegance and gracefulness. But when he spoken words finally settled on his mind, he couldn't help but be thoroughly mortified.

'You drool in your sleep.'

'You drool in your sleep.'

'You drool in your sleep.'

That would have been his most favorite and most hated thing, first because, oh goodness, it came from her and second, he was uh… awkward. So, to look cool, he wiped it using the back of his hand.

Percy also learned that the goddess' name was Annabeth and well, he saved her name to one if his invisible mind folders labeled My Favorites. But one thing he couldn't forget about their meeting (not that he forgot about it, it was definitely carved on his mind) was when Annabeth, goodness gracious, touched his hair. Not just a petty little touch, but she raked her hand through it. And during that time, Percy couldn't help but metaphorically fall under her feet and be literally head over heels. He felt as though a strong emotion was tugging at him, an affection he never felt with anyone. When she walked away, Percy was never this sure than ever.

He was caught in a love at first sight with her.

So when he met Annabeth again for the second time around, he really couldn't erase the thought that maybe the Fates have decided to finally bring the two of them together. But, was that really the reason behind it?

Percy stared at Annabeth, dumbfounded, unable to comprehend what she just said. He was so excited to meet her again and yet she didn't even seemed to acknowledge him. Yes, he was dreaming when he actually let himself believe that she wanted to see him too.

"You don't remember me? Percy. Percy Jackson. I was in your office a while ago," he said.

She seemed to ponder this over as she looked to be thinking really deeply. Percy's hopes were crushed when she miserably shook her head, as if she was fearing this to happen.

Piper noticed the growing tension and she spoke to start the conversation.

"Uh, you two have met before?" Piper gestured to the both of them, Percy just glanced at Annabeth and she weakly looked away.

He replied to Piper's question. "I really believe I met her previously, but well, she can't probably remember it since you know, working in an architectural firm can be pretty disturbing. Even the mind," he joked. Percy even managed a chuckle, just to ease the growing silence in the conversation, though this action just stabbed him a little deeper.

"Yeah. That might be it." Annabeth briefly peeked at him, then moved her gaze towards Piper.

"Sometimes I sort of forgot the names of people I encounter, and a point, even my own name," she lied, though that might just be considered a truth.

"Of course, this is Annabeth the workaholic, the no life girl I ever met and the not blind yet not seeing lady," Piper sang in the worst tune she could muster.

She moved to whisper something in Percy's ear. "She didn't have aaaany boyfriend in her whooooole freaking adult life."

"Piper, you know that I can clearly make out every single word you say to him, right?" Annabeth huffed.

"Of course. Maybe letting you hear it could probably spark something in you," Piper said off-handedly.

"Ah, you never changed. You are truly a daughter of Aphrodite."

"Told you right. Well, I'll leave you two. Bye." Piper walked away from them, with something bouncy in her every step.

"So…" Annabeth began. Percy could see somehow that she wanted to relieve the foreboding silence between them. He decided to play it off.

"…Apartment mates?" he continued, scrunching his eyebrows slightly as if trying to make out her side in the suggestion.

"Apartment mates." Annabeth agreed. "Good."

"Yeah. Apartment mates." Percy was beaming now, forgotten the issue earlier. 'She really knows how to brighten my mood,' he thought.

Annabeth smiled back at him, and it was more than enough to close the gaping hole in his heart.


	3. Exercitatus

Her migraine might have worked its miracles again into creating a very delusional Annabeth. Seriously, she dreamt of talking to this guy, long enough to be called a decent conversation and they were in her freaking room right now. She thought she might need another check-up for her another developing disorder. In case, there's a new disease called Annabeth's Delusional Self, she could never be sure. All she knew was she couldn't believe she was having a really normal conversation with an undoubtly cute guy who happened to be her apartment mate. And her poor mind just couldn't process what's suddenly happening. Annabeth pinched herself for good measure and wow, it hurt like fires of Hephaestus.

She's not dreaming.

Not. Really.

Her apartment mate's laughter brought her back to earth down to her room. He must've been telling a joke. She smiled for an excuse.

"Apartment mate?" she asked, trying to gather his attention.

"Really, Annabeth? You could just call me by name. Percy sounds nice," he said with a wink.

She laughed, real this time, and not some fake sound coming to bubble from her throat for some pretending thing. She missed the feeling of being happy. She missed laughing.

"Percy?" Annabeth tried the sound of his name on her tongue, and it came so natural just like speaking a word instilled to her. Like Annabeth. Like love. Like _Percy_.

Suddenly, the room temperature was too hot for Annabeth's burning face.

'Oh, Annabeth gather your wits! Really, being distracted over a guy? Forget those over-active hormones of yours!' she chastised herself.

"Yes, Annabeth?"

"Can I take a picture of you?" she asked, trying not to sound eager. It's not like she'll post it across her bed so that he's the first thing she sees when she wakes up. She would not do that. She just did this to somehow remember him, as he looked to be staying with her at some point in time. At least, that was what her mind believed. But her heart? We could never know.

"Am I too handsome?" Percy nudged her with his shoulder and she tried hard not to categorize the action as _flirty_.

"Just agree to it. I bet no one has asked you for a picture in your whole life," she teased.

"Nah. They're all too coward to go near me. I admire you for your courage though."

Annabeth picked up her camera and posed to capture him. Percy made an awful duck face. As she looked to see the image, a small smile made its way on her face, though she tried to conceal it.

"I am gorgeous. You're smiling." Percy leaned back on the sofa, his hands propped behind his head. He shifted his gaze to watch Annabeth, who failed to bit her lip from smiling.

"No you're not. And I am not smiling." She turned her back to him, trying to hide her spreading grin.

"Hahaha, Annabeth. Try harder this time. And did I tell you that I accidentally got my foot stuck inside the toilet bowl?"

With this, Annabeth burst out laughing, holding on the arm chair very hard to resist chuckling.

"See? You're laughing at me. I can't believe you can actually do this." Percy put a hand on his heart and feigned a hurt expression, but he's really beaming.

"That was the most idiotic thing I ever heard. Seriously, of all the places, the toilet bowl?"

He nodded in affirmation. "That's why we have the word 'accident' right, Annabeth?"

"Yeah. Like you're accidentally my apartment mate." Annabeth stuck a tongue at him.

"Like we're accidentally talking."

"Does that have to be an accident? I think it's very much an option."

"I guess you're right. And remember, you accidentally forgot me," Percy said nonchalantly. He didn't really meant that sentence to come out rude but he felt Annabeth stiffened beside him, gone all their playful banters a while ago. She avoided looking in his eyes. He might've crossed the line.

"Look, Annabeth I didn't –"

"You see, Percy. I need to sleep early in order to have the required 8 hours amount of sleep and to function in my maximum ability," Annabeth interrupted. She didn't pushed or shoved to get him to leave, just the look on her face was enough to drive him away. He didn't try to apologize once more though, as he thought it might just ignite her anger or it might just fall on deaf ears. As she closed the door, he heard her whispered some words. "…so that I'll not be stressed and I just might not forget your face."

Percy thought, 'Annabeth certainly didn't tell me something. I need to figure it out.'

LINEBREAK

Percy shuffled through papers and folders, trying to find the name 'Annabeth Chase'. Thanks to his newly acquired position, he had free access to the files and folders of their company. Apparently, he'd been searching for approximately 30 minutes, far too long by the time he bet he'll find it. He reached for the last folder in C section, his only last hope. When he flipped the page, he saw bold letters printed in the front: Annabeth Chase.

"Yes! Found you!" he yelp. He scampered towards the nearby chair, and held the folder like some sort of magical artifact.

"Annabeth Chase," he read.

"24 years old, born on July 12, woah, she's a Leo." He tapped his chin continuously as if contemplating a fact. "Explains the feisty attitude."

Percy continued reading the rest of her background: pretty much a long list of achievements taking up the whole pages of her document. Accidentally, he turned to her medical records. Her clinical and laboratory tests were okay, showing she has a good physical health. Not much can be seen except that she has a case of dyslexia and – what is this? He focused on the words carefully, attempting to make the dancing letters on his visions. He has dyslexia too, and perhaps they could have some sort of mutual agreement in hating books. Unfortunately, Annabeth's a book worm.

"Pro – so – pam – ne – sia," he uttered in its syllables.

"Prosopamnesia, prosopamnesia, prosopam – What the hell is this?"

He grabbed his phone and typed in the unfamiliar word eating at his curiosity. His eyebrows furrowed on concentration while he was struggling to understand the definition of the unknown word.

_Wikipedia:_

_Prosopamnesia is a selective neurological impairment in the ability to learn new faces. There is a special neural circuit for the processing of faces as opposed to other non-face objects. Prosopamnesia is a deficit in the part of this circuit responsible for encoding perceptions as memories. _

_Prosopamnesia presents itself in patients as an inability to recognize people they have previously encountered based on their faces._ _Prosopamnesiacs show a memory for facial stimuli that they learned prior to the onset of their condition (in the case of acquired prosopamnesia) or for facial stimuli that they have encountered repeatedly for long periods of time (in the case of congenital prosopamnesia)._ _They may be able to use other cues from a person, such as his hair, suit, or skin color to recognize him, if they have seen that person before. Facial features such as his nose, mouth, cheeks, eyes, and ears would appear novel to a prosopamnesiac, even after having seen a specific face many times._

Percy's eyes widened at the word, as if he couldn't believe what he was seeing. "Face forgetfulness…" He recalled back the moments when Annabeth seemed to forget about him. She'd been trying to cope up with this disease the whole time? And just then, Percy felt a swirling storm of guilt trying to break him. He'd been too haste to judge her, without knowing the situation she was in. How did she even managed to go through this when nothing seemed to stay the same? He thought of her meeting the same person over and over yet not being able to remember. He cringed. He looked back again on her papers and saw her main objective:

_To build something permanent_

Suddenly, like a flash of lightning, he scurried over his things and dashed to her place where he, as what he believed, he can be permanent.

LINEBREAK

Annabeth was slipping on her pajamas when she heard someone knocking on her door. She groaned in frustration and looked at the clock:

9:47 PM

"Who the hell takes a visit at 9:47 in the evening?" she cried.

She contemplated on changing her clothes but left it as it was, probably to emphasize that she's going to bed. She opened the door to reveal a man she knew but couldn't remember.

"Uh, hi Annabeth? Good Evening?" he greeted somewhat awkwardly.

She squinted her eyes at him, trying to remember his name. He noticed it.

"Sorry! It's Percy. Your apartment mate." He smiled shyly.

Apartment mate seemed to ring a bell on her. Yeah. Just recently, Annabeth had a new neighbor upstairs. Cool.

"Okay?" she asked. She looked over his things and saw a plastic of unopened peanuts and a jar of seaweeds on the other. She peered at him, curiously.

"Ah, yeah." He scratched his neck like he was sort of… embarrassed? Was he?

"I was hoping you could help me crack this," he raised his bag of peanuts, "and in turn, I'll give you this." He gestured to his jar of seaweeds.

She raised an eyebrow at him. She found him quite funny.

At the empty response of Annabeth, he seemed to panic a little.

"You like seaweeds, don't you?" he questioned. He's really afraid he'll get a 'no' from her, well, any 'no' sounded negative enough, especially coming from Annabeth. But, hey, it was in her documents that she liked seaweeds, nutella, olive pizza, black coffee… and well, he sounded creepy.

Annabeth glanced at him, warily.

In his frustration, he accidentally blurted out words she isn't supposed to hear: "Well, next time I can bring a jar of nutella and a cup of black coffee… or perhaps you'll like some olive pizzas with it, just – " He stopped himself. She was looking at him, incredulously. Maybe he said too much?

"Wait," she raised her hand to silence him. "How do you happen to know my favorites? Answer me."

Percy was speechless. How was he supposed to explain that he spied on her through her documents without looking like a creep?

"Uh…" The words seemed caught on his throat.

"Uh, what? Answer me," Annabeth growled at him. She could be pretty scary. He couldn't form a response.

"Tell me, have you been spying on me?" she asked, curiously.

Yes, he was actually prying on her life but he wasn't going to give her the satisfaction of knowing. Instead, he smirked.

"I may or I may not."

Annabeth gave him a matching smirk, much slyer than what he had. She's great at this.

"Definitely you are." She moved from her doorway to let him in. He grinned.

"You are happy I let you in," she pointed out.

"No, I am not." Percy tried copying her stubbornness.

"Whatever." She made her way towards the kitchen to get a large bowl when she said something.

"I am really craving for some pizza and black coffee right now," Annabeth grabbed the nut cracker on her cabinet. "But a jar of seaweeds and a bag of peanuts will do."

Really, Percy tried hard. But he couldn't wipe his smile spreading from one ear to the other when he saw her smile at the moment she thought he's not watching.

It's a secret. Don't tell Annabeth. But seriously?

He's really happy she let him in.


	4. Ignis Calorem

**HEY GUYS. It's my first A/N. Really, A/N's not my thing but I'll have to use this to perhaps, let you know that it's a pleasure to read your interesting reviews. So, maybe you could comment on how do I actually do with my first fic? Please?!**

The next morning could not have turned out any better, if not for the sort of accident (as he liked to call it) happened right at Annabeth's door. She was actually getting ready for work, when the doorbell rang.

Seriously, he could have been the same guy she talked to last night, the problem was, she couldn't actually remember, nor will she ever remember his face.

As a matter of fact, Annabeth would be very delighted to recall the moments of the night before, talking for hours over the nonsense of things. She wondered how nonsense could be such a topic, considering they were talking about polar bears previously. But perhaps, that's just the thing with him, whoever he was, he was so unpredictable. Like unpredictable her memory was.

And she'd like to believe that it was pretty much a talk out of mutual agreement, neither of them shying from the other. She could actually picture herself spilling all her thoughts on him, but that might not be the very best idea since she just met him last night. Or the other day. Or the other previous day. Whatever.

The thing was, Annabeth found it weird to feel so intimate with a person she just met. She often wondered, what if she fell in love? Would it be unfair for the guy's part to least put up with her sickness? Yes, it would be quite far for her thoughts to reach into that conclusion. She could fall in love, but she would never be loved.

She thought of how constricted the world of fairytales were, all happy, delightful and inviting, even though there were some evil parts like the stepsisters and the stepmothers and such, but nonetheless a considered paradise for her liking. Living in such environment could be envious, though it could not bring the reality that Annabeth loved with the world. Though harsh it was, the reality was one thing she was grateful to accept no matter what the consequences were. Perhaps, she'll like to conceive the thought that even though she yearned for reality, it was still possible for her to dream of having her own 'happily ever after' story to tell.

And she thought her 'happily ever after' could have begun the moment her doorbell rang.

There he was, standing in all his gloriousness, dressed in neatly pressed gray suit with a matching blue necktie, wrapped crookedly. His pointed shoes were polished like diamonds, reflecting light rays on its glossy surface. A black suitcase was on his left hand and the other was posed to knock. He looked at her in awe or pretty much a dumbstruck expression on his face.

"Oh," was all Annabeth said in that moment of silence.

"Uh…yeah. I accidentally rang your doorbell, thinking it was mine?"

What a very smooth lie.

"You doorbell you own door, seriously?" Annabeth asked him.

"…no. I- no. I don't usually knock on doorbells," he stuttered.

"I am very much certain that no one knocks on doorbells," she said. "Except for you."

"Oh." He put his face on his hands on shame, groaning loudly. Annabeth smiled secretly. She was very much enjoying this.

"Okay, forget about that. You need a ride?" he asked.

"I can go to wherever I want on my own," she replied.

"But, it'll be easier if you took a ride won't you? And perhaps, you work on Miller's Architectural firm. I go there too."

She squinted her eyes at him, scrutinizing his words.

"How do you know where I work?"

He pointed to the embroidered logo on the left side of her tailored black blazer. "It's in your outfit."

"Oh."

"So, you need not to question my wits, Annabeth," he said, smirking.

How the hell he knew her name? She will never know. Maybe they met before?

She tried not to show the indifference on her face. He managed to catch it though.

"It's Percy. Percy Jackson."

And an invisible string somewhat pulled on her mind, a guttural feeling rather than the intellectual memory, and a flash of de javu blossomed in her. Before she had the chance to see it, it quickly dissolved, leaving her with the feeling of longing. So, she did not what her guts actually tell her, and forgot the slight concerns of her mind.

As she moved to sit in the passenger's seat, she turned to him. "How do I know you're not some escaped murderer or kidnapper?"

"If you so think that a murderer could be as gorgeous as me, I think you really have to doubt."

And her jaw and stomach were cursing her for laughing all throughout the ride. "It was his fault," she blamed.

* * *

><p>The day, was fine, if there were any subtle words Annabeth could use to describe it. Apparently, she learned things she ought to know, like Percy was the new CEO of the firm, he was the same man her boss was talking about and that he was undeniably stupid.<p>

Stupid, that's what she thought. It could be either true that he had mistaken his ball pen for the lollipop on his other hand or he was trying to make her smile by accidentally throwing his reports on the garbage bin, instead of the scratch papers. She would like to believe it was the latter, partly because she thought he did these stupid things with his stupid grin to make her laugh stupidly at him. Seriously, stupid could be the word of her day. And he's not failing. A co-worker noticed her smiling stupidly while doing her share in throwing the garbage of the day. Weird. Nobody found the duty of garbage utterly amusing. Except Annabeth. For today.

"What's up with you?" Her co-worker poked her in the shoulder.

Annabeth looked at him happily. Everyone seemed bright today. Or just she.

"What's up with me? Oh, just me and the daily duties," she mused.

"Like I believe you," he said.

"Hey, it's true!" she argued.

"Okay fine." He raised his hands in surrender. "You think what you want to think. But seriously, Annie is very different today."

"I am not! And it's Annabeth!" she shouted as she went to her office.

"I know."

* * *

><p>And towards the end of the day, Annabeth had another thing figured: she might have a some sort of crush with Percy Jackson.<p>

Really.

At first, she's quite afraid to know that there had been a cage of butterflies left open inside her stomach but, apparently, it was the first sign that told her 'hey you have an impending crush coming your way.'

But, to be honest, she didn't want to feel anything for him, be it a crush or dislike. She thought it could possibly ruin her all of her built facades and leave her bold and naked, shivering under the tense of the cold air of reality. Yet, she thought he was a sun, radiating heat and light in every imaginable direction, and she wanted nothing but to succumb in his warm embrace (not that she hugged him) and break all of her walls. She wanted more of this light, of his rays spreading warmth all over her, and not burning. She longed to feel safe and somehow escape the sea of unknown faces trying to drown her. These thoughts filled her heart with doubt and worry, making the ride back home seemed lonely.

As they got out of Percy's limousine, he reached for her hand and squeezed it tightly.

"A penny for your thoughts?" he asked.

"Oh." Annabeth was back again to earth and his seemingly fragile touch triggered the butterflies in her stomach. She'd hate to put it that way, describing the tingling feeling as butterflies, but hey, you seriously first think of butterflies if you have a crush.

He chuckled lightly, holding the stair's railing while walking up the steps.

"If I hadn't known better, I would have thought 'Oh' was your favorite word."

She smiled. 'Oh' was probably a strong contender but 'stupid' did won the word of the day.

"No, it's stupid."

"What's stupid, the 'Oh' or your favorite word?" he asked."

"Well, it can do both." She smiled.

"You know," Percy turned to her, "Seaweeds aren't that bad. They're probably the second to my favorite blue foods."

"Yeah. I see you've become a seaweed too. Seaweed brain."

"Oh, shut up! I'll have a better come back for you tomorrow," he chided.

"Yeah. I bet it'll be as lame as you are," she snickered.

When they reached Annabeth's door, they stood awkwardly around each other.

"Bye," she said.

"Yeah, see you tomorrow," he replied.

No one moved.

"Good bye and good night," Annabeth whispered.

"Sweet dreams."

Still, no one moved.

"Seriously, it's a goodbye okay?" she laughed.

"Yes, I'll leave."

No one dared to move.

"Just go already." She pushed him playfully.

"You go first. I need to be sure you're safe."

"Percy, I'm just outside my door. How can I not be safe? And perhaps, it's you who needs to be safe. You still have to take the stairs."

"I will not move unless you go inside."

"Okay." She closed the door in front of him. She reached into her back pocket for her phone. None. Her phone.

She opened the door. Percy was still standing there.

"You forgot something." He handed her the phone she was looking for, smiling sincerely.

"Thank you." She closed it again.

Annabeth looked over her phone and there, in the contacts, was a new number.

_Gorgeous Percy (Seaweed) – XXXXXXXXXXX_

She couldn't help but grin.

"Knock, knock."

And as expected, he was still there standing, looking like a lost puppy.

"Don't I get a hug?" he murmured.

And so, as requested, Annabeth wrapped her arms around his neck awkwardly, but then, he held her tight, so she relaxed in his touch. She noticed something.

They fit like damn pretzels. Or puzzles. Or pretzel puzzles.

'Well, pretzels can be a new favorite.'

She breathed in his fragrance like the ocean and the delightful smell of burnt blue cookie chips in him. He might be stupid, but he felt like home. He smelled like home.

When they broke apart, Percy was grinning madly and Annabeth risked a small smile crept up her face.

"Got your token?" she asked.

"Yeah. Much more than what I've expected."

Then as he climbed up the stairs and she went inside her door, she heard him called out to her. "You'll make a great bear, Annabeth. You're an awesome hugger."

In her lone and safe place right now, with no Percy's and co-workers' to tease her about it, she would agree with her co-worker that in fact, she was grinning rather quite stupidly right now.

And yes, Annabeth had another doubt confirmed. Percy Jackson was definitely a gorgeous heartnapper.


	5. Uada

The cold, harsh winds of winter swept past Annabeth as she clutched tightly the warm material protecting her. She's walking down the people filled streets of New York, bustling with merchants selling artifacts of clothing to cover one's shivering body. It was pretty much a normal weekend for Annabeth, except for the fact that it was freezing cold outside and she had a scheduled meet up with her doctor, Dr. Swiss.

If Annabeth had known earlier, she would have re-scheduled the check up for some another day other than this. She really didn't want to have another disease bugging her. Hypothermia was one of them.

As she trudged the familiar streets of the city, Annabeth looked back to the memories which seemed to occupy her thoughts for the time being.

A lot had changed. Seriously. The whole working-in-an-architectural-firm scheme she had planned brought the initial turn of events in her life. Her world had taken an upside turn, shaking all her pre-planned thoughts. As a matter of fact, Annabeth was scared. Terrified even. How could she handle a world full of chaos, of unlimited packs of surprises and of various changes she didn't want to take? All her life was built on dreams, on plans and failures. Every time she decides to battle with life, she doesn't go unprepared. Annabeth had observed all of its tactics, of its planned schema waiting to unground her. She too, had a set of plans more than the number of letters of the alphabet had. That's how prepared Annabeth was. Well, _was_.

She didn't thought so now. How the passive, ignorant and aloof Annabeth had transformed into an active, knowing and lively Annabeth, she didn't knew. Though the sudden change was very much unplanned, it wasn't said that Annabeth didn't liked it. Annabeth loved it. It brought a new and refreshing aura around her, making her glow even more.

But one thing Annabeth really feared was that she's drawing near, closer to that same pitch black hole that she fell before. The unwavering attraction and pulling sensation of curiosity sprung from its depths, tugging her towards the unknown end of the hole. Annabeth had fallen in the same hole before and it wasn't good.

She was broken, unmended and shattered.

And again, for the second time around, she was lead on the nearing edge of that same pitiful hole. That same pitch black hole they referred to as love.

Love. The all too familiar warmth of the word was long gone. To tell the truth, Annabeth had encountered that before and wondered how they didn't become friends. How was she always out of luck when it comes to -?

"Ow!" Annabeth was jolted out of her thoughts when something hard hit her head. She looked up to see that she collided with a telephone post, particularly the post outside Dr. Swiss' office. Just in luck.

She pushed in the massive glass doors while soothingly rubbing the soft spot in her head. The doctor's secretary greeted her warmly.

"Good morning, miss. Appointment for Dr. Swiss?" the woman asked politely.

"Yes. It's Annabeth Chase." She pushed the white envelope towards the woman and read it silently. After a few silent beats, the secretary nodded affirmatively.

"Second door on your left," the woman said.

"Thank you."

Annabeth walked through the same path over again, that she did not need the woman to tell her where to go. Dr. Swiss' office was one thing she liked to call home, where she was appreciated in full understanding. Dr. Swiss was like a mother she never had but longed to. After all, Annabeth didn't appeared to have any blood related parents except for those who truly cared for her. Her real parents were more like familiar strangers in her clouded memory and no more than that. Dr. Swiss though, she knew her face by heart, that even Prosopamnesia couldn't erase. She opened the door to Dr. Swiss' office.

There, seated in a black swiveling chair was a woman in her late 40's, brown hair cut short, but either way resembling a very matured and respected woman for her age. Black rimmed specs were seated on the bridge of her nose, her hazel eyes crinkling a little from where she smiled and her lips quirked on recognition, She put down the book she was reading earlier and moved up to hug Annabeth.

"Oh, Annabeth dear," Dr. Swiss said as she encased the young lady in her tender embrace.

"Yes, Dr. Swiss. I missed you too."

The doctor stepped back and observed Annabeth with happiness.

"How much you have grown!" Dr. Swiss exclaimed. Annabeth laughed.

"And you are certainly more charming too," the doctor praised.

"Of course, I am," she joked.

"To what do we account this sudden change, Annabeth?"

"No…one." Annabeth replied as she comfortably seated herself.

"So, it's a person huh?"

"Oh, no! It's…nothing." She stuttered.

"Oh, please Annabeth. We all know you are a terrible liar." Dr. Swiss said as she went back to her chair. "Spit it out."

Annabeth was somewhat happy that Dr. Swiss knew all about her. However, she did not need to apprehend her on being a terrible liar.

"You know Dr. Swiss, we can start now. There are other patients waiting." Annabeth suggested, trying to change the subject.

"No. I don't have patients for this particular day other than you. And you are more than a patient to me. You are like my daughter. Vitals and tests can wait. I want to know what goes in your mind and your heart right now. Tell me my dear."

Annabeth, feeling that this was the inevitable, trusted her voice to speak out her thoughts that remained unheard and the feelings she couldn't describe. She voiced this out in one swift motion, pausing at a point or two but nonetheless speaking with utter confidence Annabeth never thought she held.

Aside from that, Dr. Swiss was the very first person she trusted enough to tell of her story. She confessed everything. From the very first day of her existence and the day her mother hated her. How she struggled with difficulties in remembering people. She recalled the very first moment she realized she was sick. Not a normal sickness but so, so much more.

* * *

><p><em>Flashback<em>

_Annabeth was sitting on one of the school benches, waiting for her father to fetch her. Most of the kids had already gone with their parents, and she was left with the other kids who were busy playing tag._

_On that moment, a woman in a business suit came up to her, brunette hair tied in neat bun, as opposed to her golden blonde locks, and with the same intensity of gray eyes like her. In any instinct, they were easily recognized as a mother and daughter, so all were shock, especially the woman when Annabeth uttered: "Who are you?"_

* * *

><p>And life had never been the same.<p>

She was never included in any family events or gatherings. Her classmates steered away of her. Her mother despised her. She never recalled anyone except her father, who was kind enough to let Annabeth stay, but no other than a ghost in the household. She had no one to hold on to. No one to cry on to.

'_It's better to die than to endure these pains for the rest of my life.'_

But, Annabeth never feared death. At least, that was she thought. And so she went on. Until she reached here.

She was no longer bounded by the chains of her family. After successfully finishing a degree, she moved and started a life on her own. On her own _alone_.

"So," Dr. Swiss began, breaking her out of her thoughts. "You have met a guy whom you see every day and is… super nice to you?"

Annabeth nodded.

"And you have developed a certain liking but you couldn't remember him clearly and you're afraid he'll be shocked to know what you have?"

She nodded weakly.

"Oh dear. I could never tell." Dr. Swiss hugged Annabeth. "Perhaps, you should give it a try. If he changes you for the better, then good. I could never wish more for you than your happiness. Don't worry. I'll be always right here to support you."

Tears were glistening her eyes, but she held them back. She needed to be strong by now.

She needed to show she was strong.

Like her family never did.


	6. Optimus

**A/N: Cool. The last time I updated I forgot to write another Author's Note for you guys. So, well here is it. I made some adjustments about my schedule since class started to become evil ever since I recovered from the school vacation. I think I might have made the chapter a little longer than what I used to write, so be glad. Still, reviews are very much appreciated!**

* * *

><p>Annabeth woke up in a vibrating pillow, her ringtone muffled by the layers of cotton above her phone, creating a disoriented buzzing rhythm.<p>

She must have left her phone in there before she slept. She grabbed the little device and typed in the password for a few tries before successfully unlocking it.

Annabeth squinted her eyes at the bright screen, a pop-up showing she got a message from Gorgeous Percy (Seaweed):

Percy: Morning. Want to take a walk?

She should have been shocked. But he had already called, text and asked her several times that a casual offer for a walk seemed no more than a good morning would sound to her. A good morning that would sent a blinding smile on her face and a warm feeling on Annabeth's chest that could beat up any hot soup shoved down her throat. She thought it's stupid. That she was stupid for allowing her thoughts drift to _that_. But a little part of her wishes that he also feels the same way she feels about him and thinks of her the way she thinks of him. Like Annabeth thought of him with the most awesome un-prince charming-like attitude that happen to sweep her off her feet yet, ended up losing both of their balance causing them to fall hard on their butts. And then they would laugh like hobos do laugh and they would ride the back of a truck while munching on double stuf Oreo cookies, rather than a fairytale pumpkin carriage driven by a not-so-real horse. She so desperately hopes he likes her too, because she likes him too much for it to become addicting.

Annabeth reconsidered this before typing:

Annabeth: Morning too. Sorry, but no.

She got up from her bed and stretched up but not for too long when her phone buzzed again.

Percy: Sorry too. But, I'm already outside your house.

Her face frowned for a moment before she replied.

Annabeth: You shouldn't have asked. It's not like you gave me options anyway.

Annabeth barely made it to the bathroom door when she felt another vibration.

Percy: Come with me (no breakfast) or come with me (w/ breakfast). Now, choose.

Annabeth: Tempting…but, I think I'll pick the former.

Percy: Annabeth! Why?!

Annabeth laughed quietly, thinking it was so Percy to have emoji's on a text message. It was so him she could hardly think of anything but his goofy face. She thought this over before typing.

Annabeth: I want to see you cry.

Percy: No joke. But, I'm going inside your house. I'm dragging you here.

Annabeth: You wouldn't. (insert glare here)

Percy: (glares back, more intense) Yes, I would.

Annabeth stifled a laugh as she changed her clothes. It wasn't like she didn't want him there, it was exactly the opposite. But, she'd like to play with him a little longer than what was possible.

Annabeth: No, you wouldn't. I'm changing. Unless you have some dark intentions back there….

She went over her door to find a completely red Percy, clutching his phone like a lifeline with a very horrified expression on his face. Was the thought of her in lingerie really that terrifying? She hoped not.

"Hello. I think we should start walking," Annabeth said, as she waved a hand on his face.

He looked to be extremely mortified.

Annabeth walked past him and when she glanced back, she's beaming at Percy.

"By the way Percy, I just have to say this. But, I really like your hair."

She thought it was too much. That it was too personal to be categorized as friendly and he would think of her as a really freak girl.

So she decided to walk a few more steps to avoid the growing awkwardness before she was stopped by a very amused and giddy Percy.

"Is it real, Annabeth?" He held her shoulders tightly they might leave a mark, but she doesn't care. Annabeth doesn't care that he might be the death of her. Besides, if he did, she'd die happy anyways. Percy stared at her intently, watching her expression. "Did you just say my name?"

Annabeth blinked at him. "Yeah, I think I did."

His face turned from amused to joyful. The next thing Annabeth knew was that she was engulfed in a massive bear hug. Percy's arms were carefully wrapped around her petite body and he was so soft he might've been a teddy bear in disguise. His chin was rested on her head and her nose nuzzled the red scarf hanging around his neck. Annabeth might have also heard his steady and strong pulse despite the thick layers of fabric covering his skin. She could feel him smile even though she couldn't see his face. If anything, Annabeth noticed that he held her tighter than before, and perhaps it was enough to hear their hearts on the same beat and to feel their breathing on the same intervals. She let out a cold, smoky puff and Percy laughed breathily.

"You remembered my name," was all he said. But, Percy said it with such intensity that it sent a whole lot of shivers and warmth in Annabeth's body. It reopened the cage of butterflies and well, it also brought out fluffy clouds for it to feel like she was on literal cloud nine. And that's when it hit her. She had said his name aloud without thinking, not even trying to remember who he was. His name rolled off her tongue so easily it might always slip. And really, Annabeth tried hard, but she couldn't pinpoint the reason. Was she already starting to heal? She hopes so. But, perhaps he'd been with a lot for her hands and ears to feel and hear that it's Percy. The guy who went inside her life without knocking and stayed without even asking. He has this kind of aura that made her feel so special. So special that sometimes it starts to get hurt. Annabeth doesn't push him, though. They've been stuck together for a time that if she tried to get him off, it would just double the pain.

"You spied on me," Annabeth confirmed. Percy stopped laughing and before he said anything, Annabeth said, "Don't even try to deny it."

He hummed contentedly. "I wasn't going to deny it. It's true. I spied on you."

"How much have you known?" she asked cautiously.

Percy shrugged, "About your personal profile, hobbies, profiles, work experiences and the like."

Annabeth tensed. "How about my condition?"

"You being dyslexic or you having diagnosed with prosopamnesia?"

Her throat suddenly felt dry and the air became too dense for Annabeth. "The latter."

"Face-forgetfulness. That's why you didn't remember me the second time we met?"

She nodded.

"I really thought I creep you back then. Thinking you wanted to forget me for being so stupid," Percy whispered.

Her chuckles were muffled by his coat, but Percy thought it was endearing. Annabeth, as a whole, was always endearing.

He's crazy.

"Aren't you scared or disgusted by me?" Annabeth asked after a few silent beats.

"Why would I? I'm dyslexic too. And people with same case as yours should be taken with extra care."

"Do you think I'm fragile?"

"No," he said firmly. "You're just misunderstood, misjudged, but you're not weak. You're strong Annabeth."

"Easy for you to say."

"You remembered me anyways," he said.

"Yeah," she said. "I think I just said it unknowingly."

He wrapped a blond curl around his finger, tugging at it softly. "Was that supposed to be a good thing or a bad thing?"

"I don't know. Depends on what you think of it," Annabeth answered.

"Well, what I think doesn't matter. Your opinion matters to me."

Annabeth chuckled. "You're being sappy."

"I've been told."

"I…" Annabeth began, but she couldn't get the words out. "Both. I think."

Percy stopped twirling the curl and rested his hands on Annabeth's back.

"Why?"

"I guess…I don't know how to tell it."

"It's fine," Percy whispered. "It's fine."

He doesn't push her. He doesn't force her. Percy just lets her think and have the time she wants. And it's another trait she's grateful for. He was always patient.

She looked into his eyes and they seemed to be peering through her. But what caught her breath was that they were a few shades brighter that earlier, and they definitely dulled the stars she once colored on her solar system project. His sea green eyes contrasted dramatically with his windswept ebony hair and she thinks she could remember him far more than the extent of her memory offered.

She would remember him with every cell of her being.

"Let's go," Percy said and walked ahead of her only by three steps when Annabeth called him.

"Percy."

He turned back, his eyebrows creasing ever so slightly she found him cute, with a curious glance at her.

Annabeth smiled gratefully at him, sweeter than her any other smiles for Percy. And when he blushed, her smile could have reached both the tip of her ears.

"Thanks for being my best friend."

* * *

><p>Percy had been with Annabeth all throughout the day, even though she just promised a morning walk. So much had happened that it didn't even seemed real, as if he was dreaming all along. But no, he can never smell her lemon-scented hair if he was in a dream. Nor can he even hold her hand without shooting electricity on his fingertips. Percy had been with her far too many times that he can tell which hand was Annabeth's, even blindfolded. He knows every strip of emotion that passes through her face and he knows how Annabeth's pulse always fall on the same beat as him. He found it weird actually, knowing so much of a person by just spending a whole day with her. Especially when he feels like they've been best friends forever when in fact, she just announced the new progress not later that morning.<p>

Well, Percy thinks Annabeth's more than just a girl to him. She's more than a quite stubborn yet wise prosopamnesiac girl he had ever encountered. She was so Annabeth-y that sometimes it strikes him how full she was. She was far better than any other girl he met that everyone seemed so normal and dull compared to Annabeth. He thought back on the time she thanked him for being her best friend when in fact, it was her he needed to thank. Annabeth made him so real that it's harder to draw back from her world than before. Percy's breathing her so much he's afraid he cannot survive without her holding him. Or being around him.

He'd drank of her too many to be called healthy and ended up being intoxicated to her instead.

* * *

><p>Annabeth laughed as she aimed a snowball on Percy. Thankfully, he managed to dodge it right in time before it made contact with his red-nosed puffy face.<p>

"That's unfair! I wasn't even looking!" Percy protested.

"That's the game, Perce. Sorry, we're enemies today," Annabeth replied as she threw another one. It landed on Percy's right ear.

"Cold," he said as he faked convulsing. It's true that it's cold, since it's really snowing but, he did that for extra dramatic effect. Well, because he looked funny. And being funny made Annabeth happy. She was just the reason, seriously.

She was busy giggling when he secretly threw a snowball at her. It hit her straight in the face. Annabeth stopped moving. He was afraid for second there before she started sprinting off toward his direction and he knew they're in for playing tag tonight.

They continuously ran in circles, getting curious glances from others but, they didn't care. Percy didn't care.

When he suddenly paused, Annabeth easily caught up to him and judo-flipped him right on the spot. Percy was glad it was snowing, for it helped soften the blow. She pushed her right knee on his chest and pressed her right arm tightly below his chin. Annabeth looked at him furiously, well tried to, but she was holding back her grin that it looked like a grimace. Her face was flushed from the run and she was breathing heavily but, nonetheless she got that smug look on her face that Percy thinks translates to 'Yeah-I-win-you-are-loser-Idiot.'

"Cheater," Annabeth said, quite short of breath.

"That's the game, Wise Girl."

"You do know that you just complimented me instead of insulting me?"

"I know."

"Good thing you know, Seaweed Brain."

They don't speak for a moment, just staring at each other while all seemed to move around them. Time sort of froze in their Percy-Annabeth zone. Percy though that this was the moment when Annabeth was supposed to lean in and kiss him senseless right there, like what usually happens in the movies. But this was not a movie and this was Annabeth for goodness sake! She could do something out of the ordinary and still look awesome.

Annabeth dusted herself off him and muttered, "We should head home."

Percy followed in suit, and he's pretty sure she was more than ordinary.

They reached the subway in time.

"Go get the tickets," Annabeth ordered.

Percy felt his back pockets. He did it again. He looked into every pocket his jeans have but there's no traces of his wallet. His wallet, together with his phone, was gone.

"Oh, shit!"

Annabeth glanced at him warily. "Percy?"

Percy looked at her horrified. "I think we need to walk."

* * *

><p>"You're stupid enough to lose both your phone and wallet," Annabeth said as she popped a cookie in her mouth, "but more stupid to make us ride in the back of an animal truck."<p>

A cow moos at her for some effect.

"See?"

"It's the best option we have," Percy replied while reaching for another cookie in Annabeth's hand.

"No, it's not. We could have hailed a cab to the apartment and pay him right there."

"Yeah, but this is awesome." A pig snorted, if that was even to be called a snort, like it was trying to say that it didn't definitely agree.

"Even the pig wants us out."

"You should've brought your phone and wallet Annabeth."

"I really wish I did. Riding secretly on this truck makes me like some sort of an escaped criminal," she said.

"At least, we're good looking criminals," Percy joked.

"Just shut up, Percy."

They spent the rest of their time chatting quietly while eating Oreo cookies to accompany their hungry stomachs.

Sometimes, when they lose track of their conversation, they just squeezed each other's hand and everything was said right then and there. Or at times, he just listens to her every intake and release of breath while she feels the steady throbbing of his pulse on her hand.

These things, Percy thinks, what doesn't usual best friends do. They weren't supposed to judo-flip each other, ride at the back of an animal truck and listen like a creep to his best friend's breathing. But, he wasn't normal. Annabeth wasn't normal, either. Different in a way whatever it may sound, but they were Percy and Annabeth. Not some typical best friends who were always nice with each other. Compliments for them were sarcasms, hanging out meant playing monopoly or tag, and late midnight snacks were seaweeds, pizzas and blue pancakes. They were far beyond the definition of normal.

Well...

He's Percy Jackson.

"Wise Girl?"

Her best friend.

"Yeah, Percy?"

She's Annabeth Chase.

"Thanks for being my best friend."

His best friend.

"Yeah, Seaweed Brain."

And nothing else mattered.


End file.
